#Festivalof86 Event Coverage

This is part of our series of articles published leading up to and during Toyota’s #Festivalof86!
Aasbo x Yates Interview
Fredric Aasbo’s NASCAR-powered Toyota 86 Drifter
Beau Yates’ Turbo Toyota 86 Drifter
#Festivalof86 Event Coverage
#Festivalof86 – Dave Vella’s 270kw 86

What do you do when you get a chance to photograph the Toyota #Festivalof86?
You go!

I headed out on Saturday morning to the one-make event, knowing that even though the platform is still relatively new there would be no shortage of personalised touches to see.When I arrived the Tunehouse 86 was sitting pretty all-alone out front – currently the fastest 86 in Australia! I’m sure you’ve all seen the photos from WTAC.

The classic AE86 was welcome at the event and some mint examples made the effort to head out!

Something that has absolutely blown me away was just how personalised every 86 was. It was clear from the start that the 86 was going to be an aftermarket parts magnet.

Representing Toyota was Tetsuya Tada, the chief engineer for the 86 platform. Tada-san inspected each of the cars in the lineup inside, sharing stories and jokes with the owners. He also spent a huge amount of time walking among the parking lot talking with the owners of cars that didn’t make it inside. He must have wrists of steel from the amount of autographs he signed throughout the two day event!

Along with the mind-blowingly cool location, there were food trucks, a decent DJ setup and no shortage of people to talk to.

Its not every day your photoshoot gets interrupted by Australian rallying royalty Neal Bates and commentator Neil Crompton checking out the car!

The event was held at the beautiful White Bay Cruise Terminal right next to Sydney city.
Walking around the venue I was blown away with the setup. There were tonnes of 86s and BRZs in the parking lot, with a special select few inside the terminal itself.
Below is a shot of the cars from inside, outside for a photoshoot against the city.

 

Back to the car park.

The 86 is pretty damned photogenic, and it was great to see the level of individuality that the owners and Toyota themselves have embraced so warmly. I’m keen to see how the platform ages over time!

True to the enthusiast name tag, James the owner of the 9Lives 86 was more than happy to talk about his setup, track times and that giant rear GT86 diffuser.

Well that’s my take on the #Festivalof86, I hope you enjoyed!

Tags: 86, ae86, australia, featured, festivalof86, ft86, nsw, sam whitehead, sydney, toyota, toyota 86, toyota australia, white bay